“Stringy beanpole players who are long in the arm and short on energy will say anything to convince you that it’s a bad idea to run back and forth. Half-court basketball is their evolutionary niche—they can stand under the basket gobbling up rebounds and tapping in misses without ever moving their size-19 feet. Shawn Bradley is just one rule change away from being the NBA Finals MVP.” Slate‘s Felix Gillette compares NBA players to those guys you play pick-up with. Speaking of hoops, it was nice to see two competitive playoff games again last night. Ever since the Game 7 implosions by Houston and Boston last weekend, the playoffs have been Mismatch City.